1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of manufacturing inflatables, and more particularly to methods for manufacturing inflatable decks.
2. Description of Related Art
The traditional way to produce inflatable decks that present flat surfaces when inflated is to rely on an I-beam connector web that extends between and connects a top and bottom sheet of material. The I-beam web evenly pulls two top and bottom sheets together so they will stay in a flat, untwisted shape when the deck is inflated. I-beam webs are found in many inflatable decks of various shapes. Using an I-beam connecting web, however, involves numerous manufacturing steps and requires additional materials and is therefore relatively costly. If the top and bottom sheets are bonded directly together to form an X-beam construction, the additional material for the web and the resulting manufacturing steps are not required since the X-beam is formed by simply heat sealing the top and bottom sheets together with a press. Unfortunately, when using a conventional X-beam construction, the deck becomes twisted when inflated and does not present flat top and bottom surfaces as required.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a new and improved method of manufacturing an inflatable deck, and the provision of such a method is a stated objective of the present invention.